


Broken Shadows

by Pastel_dreamer



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Aliens, Angst, Choking, Creepy, Gen, Ghosts, Horror, Hurt, Hurt/Comfort, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Paranoia, it is a little spooky
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-10
Updated: 2020-02-10
Packaged: 2021-02-28 02:27:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,265
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22646404
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pastel_dreamer/pseuds/Pastel_dreamer
Summary: “Our planet is in grave danger. The shadows are growing darker. Please help.”After the team receives a distress signal from an abandoned planet, they return to the castle to find something else has followed them back. Something far more dangerous than the Galra. Now the team must rely on their skills and each other to figure out how to stop these creatures before they are all turned into shadows.
Comments: 3
Kudos: 8





	Broken Shadows

Lance groaned, pulling a boot over his already aching foot. After an intense three day battle, the castle had made a hasty retreat to the far edge of some random galaxy, hoping to give the paladins a day to recover and train. Unfortunately, that was not the case, as shortly after they arrived the castle received an urgent message from one of the planets in the area. 

So now here Lance was at the unholy hour of 4:30 in the morning, walking to the bridge and hoping that today's mission wouldn’t be difficult. 

Everyone else was already there as Lance took a seat between Hunk and Pidge, nudging Hunk’s shoulder. "Ready to meet some cute aliens with me today?" 

Hunk rolled his eyes. "You go ahead, I'm just hoping they have some ingredients I can use. With all this fighting I’m running low on food again and I know you all hate when I experiment in the kitchen.”

Lance and Pidge shared a look, remembering the time Hunk tried to make a smoothie out of food goo and some old fruit. After a long night of puking, they all swore to find ingredients whenever they could. 

“Good morning Paladins, I hope you all slept well last night.” Allura glided into the room, somehow still graceful and regal even after several sleepless nights. She pulled up the star map. “I was hoping you all would get a chance to rest, but we have received an urgent message from the planet Envara.” She zoomed in across the maps to a small, grey planet on the edge of the Galran empire. “Our records say there is a race called the Slathers that specialize in mining a specific mineral used in making ship parts. One hour ago a short call was received to the castle.”

She pulled up the audio file and clicked play. White noise filled the room. Over it, a deep, growly voice could be heard. 

_“Our planet is in grave danger. The shadows are growing darker. Please help.”_

_“Our planet is in grave danger. The shadows are growing darker. Please help.”_

_“Our planet is in grave danger. The shadows are growing darker. Please help.”_

Allura turned it off with a click. “We have searched all other channels, but this is the only one active. It seems to be continually broadcasting into space, and we just so happened to pick it up when we stopped here.”

Shivers ran down Lance’s back, “sure does seem a little ominous.” 

“What does it mean by shadows?” Keith asked.

Allura shrugged, “we have no other information and their communication systems seem to have been taken down. I expect full alertness and be on your guard when landing. Due to the mining, the air is radioactive, so keep helmets on. Coran and I will be on the comms and updating information on the planet as you go. Best of luck to you all.” 

It was that simple. They got into their lions, flying off to the planet. As they drew closer, the coordinates seemed to point to the center of a village. From overhead, there didn't seem to be any fighting, but just to be safe the lions landed close to the perimeter of the town. 

Lance stepped out onto the rocky ground with a frown. The village sat in the middle of a large valley, around it tall, jagged mountains rose into the air, giving the feeling of isolation. Short, grey houses grown over by dark green vines lined the stone roads. 

The whole place was unnaturally quiet. There was no sound of voices or shouting, and no birds chirped from the trees. The only noise was the crunch of gravel beneath their feet and the wind. Somewhere in the back of Lance’s mind, alarm bells began to ring. Something was wrong. 

“Let’s head out, be on the lookout for any Slathers.” Shiro said over the coms, taking the lead. The four followed, eyes peeled for any signs of danger. 

A slight breeze whistled through the desolate town, sending chills through Lance. The streets were completely empty and houses stood empty and dark, falling apart from neglect and age. 

“What do you think happened to this place?” Pidge asked grimly, looking around with obvious discomfort. 

“I don’t know, looks like everyone just got up and left one day. There are no signs of a struggle.” Keith replied. 

No windows were smashed, no doors stood ajar. It was like walking through a historical village. Everything meticulously in place, but not a soul living there. 

Lance focused on the road ahead as they walked. 

"Do you see anything?" Hunk asked, "you’re kind of staring off." 

"Something is off," Lance said, concentrating on the scene before him. Wherever he looked it was like looking at a picture that was drawn wrong. It was a clear day, and the sun beat down from them overhead but yet- he paused, “guys, look at your shadows.”

Pidge stopped and peered down at her feet. “What? I don’t see anything.” 

“Exactly, the sun is directly overhead right now,” Lance said. “So we don’t have shadows, but why does everything else?”

It fell silent as the team looked around in shock. Dark shadows stretched their way across the streets in every which way. Some house’s shadows overlapped, in no way correlating with the sun’s position. Lance didn’t notice it at first but now that he pointed it out, it was as clear as day. 

The level of uneasiness in the team reached a peak. Before Shiro could stop him, Keith stepped forward into one, shrugging. “It’s cold, but it’s just a shadow.” 

“Shiro, I’m not so sure about this,” Hunk said nervously.

“I agree. This could be a trap.” Lance said, “We should leave.” 

Shiro was about to confirm when a small house towards the center of town caught his attention. A candle burned in the window and unlike the rest of the houses, smoke drifted from its chimney. “Let’s go see over there. Keep your bayards ready and try to avoid the shadows, I don’t like the look of them.”

The group cautiously made their way over, but just like the rest of the village, the town square was deserted. Shiro went up to the door and knocked. 

A large crash and angry muttered words rang through the house before the door swung open. A ripple of gasps passed through them. A small, old creature stared up at them with the universally known face of apprehension and annoyance. He had long, thin legs and gangly arms that grazed the ground. His skin was a pale green, but the most disturbing feature was his eyes; or rather the place where his eyes should be. Empty eye sockets stared up at the group. The sockets were surrounded by deep, uneven scars, like someone had gorged his eyes out with a steak knife. Hunk turned away, looking rather pale. 

“I don’t want nothing to do with y'all. Leave me alone,” The creature grumbled. Shiro quickly put a hand on the door before the alien could slam the door shut, finding his voice. 

“We are sorry to bother you, my name is Shiro, and I am a paladin of Voltron. We got an urgent rescue signal coming from here, did you send that?”

He shook his head, “I never sent anything of that sort.” 

“Then who sent the signal?” Pidge asked, “I swear it came from this planet.” 

“Ain't no one here but me and the shadows people,” He gestured for them to come inside. The five shuffled in nervously, crowding together in the tight space. Every nook, cranny, and crevice was stuffed with books and papers. Upon looking closer, every paper was covered in nothing but scribbles, lines, and messy drawings of black figures with large white eyes and horns. Lance flipped open a book out of curiosity, only to be met with the same meaningless scribbles and drawings. He nudged Shiro, gesturing towards the book. Shiro’s brow furrowed, but before he could say anything the alien started to speak again, “I’m the bookkeeper you see, I keep the books nice and safe and in return, they leave me alone.” 

“Who leaves you alone?” Keith asked.

He stroked his hands over a book as if it was a prized possession. “The shadows people. Don't ask them no questions, don’t start no conversation, but most importantly don't look them in the eye. That’s how they take ya." He cackled, raising his voice and shaking his fist in the air. "Can't catch me if I can't see you! How you like that ya monsters?" He doubled over laughing, sending a pile of books clattering to the floor with a cloud of dust. The paladins looked at each other nervously. Lance twirled his finger around his head, mouthing the word _“crazy_.” 

Shiro pressed on, "is there anything we can do to help? Maybe we can come to terms with these people." 

He sobered up instantly, black sockets staring directly at Shiro. "There ain't no negotiating with this sort. they'll take ya before you get two words out your mouth. It would be best if y'all turned around and forgot this place ever existed. If you ain't too late, maybe you can get out of here alive." He chuckled again, dropping to his hands and knees and picking up books. 

When none of the paladins moved he sighed and waved his hands. "Scram. Get out of here. I must get back to work, I keep the books safe you know. I’m the bookkeeper." 

"Thank you for your time," Shiro said awkwardly, guiding the others quickly back out the door. Strands of muttering could be heard drifting out the windows. "Ya monsters didn’t expect me to take me own eyes did ya? And now what? I win. But those five are in trouble." 

"Yeah, let's get out of here. I was never big on this ghost stuff. That guy freaked me out." Hunk said, staring off into the street as if expecting something to pop out any minute. 

"Same here," Lance said with a shutter, "dude gave me the heebie-jeebies. And I do not want to meet those shade things he was going on about." 

Pidge rolled her eyes, "come on though, shadow people? He was probably talking about these shadows on the road. Which, by the way, aren’t alive. I scanned them." She proudly held up a small device and pointed it at the nearest wayward shadow. It made a sad beep and she turned the screen, "see? No life detected. The guy is nuts." 

"I wonder about that distress signal though," Keith said, “if he didn't send it who did?"

Lance shrugged, "who knows. maybe it was just a glitch. The Altean systems are pretty old, even if Allura and Coran don't like to admit it." 

Keith reluctantly agreed and the five climbed back into their lions, nervous energy surrounding them. Lance was just glad it didn’t take too long, there was a strong feeling of being watched at that place, with its empty houses and weird shadows. 

The group was so caught up in their conversation, they failed to recognize that even though the sun hadn't changed positions, all five of them now had small shadows.

* * *

Lance awoke with a gasp, sitting up with a groan. The bright analog numbers read 3:30am and he sighed, licking his chapped lips. "It's way too early for this,” he muttered. It was prime time for some water. He flicked on the lights in his room, sliding into slippers to protect his feet from the cold floors. 

The hallway’s soft blue lighting lit up automatically as he walked down to the kitchen. He didn't care what others thought, nothing hit the spot after a bad dream like a glass of cold, 3am water. The dark kitchen was right in front of him when Lance jumped, his heart skipping a beat. 

A shadow stood in the corner of the kitchen. Judging from height, Lance guessed it was Shiro. Poor guy never got enough sleep. 

"Hey Shiro, you scared me for a minute. What are you doing in the dark?" Lance flicked on the lights, his breath catching in his throat. 

That wasn't Shiro. 

Veronica.

Short brown hair, square glasses, and wearing her favorite blue t-shirt, there was no doubt: it was his oldest sister. Lance blinked, pinching his nose to make sure he wasn't dreaming. When he assured that yes, he was very much awake, he took a step back, eyes locked on her, silent. 

It couldn't be her, that was impossible. But yet magically, here she was, standing there in the corner, her dark brown eyes staring at him with such an intensity he thought he would melt on the spot. Those were not the eyes of his sister. Her eyes were soft and intelligent, these were cold and dead. 

"I know you're not Veronica," Lance said, trying to hide the quiver in his voice. His heartbeat thudded in his chest. "If this is some kind of prank it's not funny." 

She didn't move. 

Thoughts about the old man from the planet flashed through his head. Maybe he was hallucinating. 

"Who-who are you?" 

The question rang unanswered. 

Not-Veronica took a step closer.

Then another. 

Then another. 

Lance stumbled back, hands up in front of him, "I don't want to hurt you, I just want to help. My name is Lance-" 

He cut off with a scream as she charged at him, shoving him to the floor with surprising strength and pressing him into the floor, her cold fingers wrapping around his neck. 

Lance lay mortified as Not-Veronica morphed before him. Her smooth skin bubbled and broke out with black rashes and her teeth rotted and sharpened to points. Brown eyes rolled back, black liquid dripping from the tear ducts and onto Lance’s face, sizzling against his skin. 

He choked out a scream, struggling against her, "y-you’re not Veronica! Let me go! Help! Somebody help-!" He called out in desperation, wheezing as the hands around his neck tightened. He threw his weight against her but he might as well be trapped underneath a rock for all the difference it made. 

Thin lips curled into a smile and she raised a decaying fist, curling long twisted fingers into a fist and plunging it deep into his stomach. 

_Cold._

Icy hot fire raced through his veins and he screamed, his vision going white. Frozen needles raced through his limbs, ripping up his insides and turning his skin to ice. It climbed up to his throat and took his breath away like he had been dunked in freezing water. He was burning, he was going to burn and freeze to death all at the same time and no one was going to hear him-

“Lance!”

The pain stopped and Lance gasped, rolling on his side and clenching his stomach, his eyes screwed shut. Bile rose his way up his throat and he pushed it down, taking a deep breath. He felt a hand on his shoulder and Shiro’s voice filtered through the lingering pain. “Lance, what’s wrong? Are you hurt? What happened? Can you open your eyes for me?” 

He squinted his eyes open to see Shiro knelt beside him, hair disheveled and thoroughly freaked out. “I was stabbed,” Lance painted, “There was this thing-”

Shiro pulled Lance’s arms away from his stomach, expecting to see blood, but instead, there was nothing but a clean, blue shirt. "Wait. What is this, some kind of joke?” 

“What?” Lance looked down. There was no blood. Not even a hole in his t-shirt. 

He gasped in surprise, scrambling backward until his back hit the wall, scanning every corner of the room with wide eyes. That wasn’t possible, he felt it! He saw her fist go into his stomach, her hands wrap around his neck. Even now he could still feel its cold presence, pushing against him from all corners, looking at him.

Shiro watched with concern as Lance lifted up his shirt to reveal a large, purple bruise over his stomach. His heart dropped. “No-no Shiro it’s not a joke I felt it. Right where this bruise was. There was this thing- and she looked like Veronica but she wasn't Veronica and she turned into this demon thing and she attacked me, with her fist. I felt her and it _hurt_. Shiro trust me. I don’t know what’s happening. She tried to choke me.” The hem of his shirt shook in his hands, and Lance glanced around again, scooting closer to Shiro. 

Shiro tilted Lance's head up, his uneasiness growing at the ring of bruises darkening around his neck. Something serious had happened. “Alright take a deep breath, I believe you.“ Shiro put an arm around the trembling boy. He had never seen Lance this shaken up before, and frankly, it scared him. "Maybe it was a nightmare," he said cautiously, “we had a long day today and they can seem pretty real sometimes. There is a chance you got banged up in the battle and just didn't notice the bruises till now." 

Lance shook his head, his eyes darting around, always coming back to the shadowy corner where she first came, seeing if she would show back up again. "It wasn't that. I can still feel her.” He unconsciously rubbed his stomach, a phantom cold chasing through his body. 

Shiro looked around the empty kitchen. Nothing was out of place, and if anyone or anything had gotten in, there would have been an alarm. Even so, better safe than sorry. He stood up to look around when a hand wrapped around his wrist. “Don’t go over there. That’s where she came from.” Lance said, looking absolutely terrified. Shiro hesitated. On one hand, this could have been just a nightmare gone out of control, (the castle could get a little creepy at night) but on the other, instinct warned him to stay out of the kitchen. 

Shiro had an idea. “There is a camera around this area, We’ll go get Coran and check them, how does that sound? He usually gets up early anyway.” 

Lance nodded, feeling a little bad at waking Coran up, but he was the only one with the clearance to get into the security cameras. 

He held out his hand to Lance, who gratefully took it, hauling himself up with a wince. The two walked back down the hallway to Coran's room, and gradually Lance felt his fear fade away, replaced with a bone dead tiredness. Lance’s eyes dropped and his feet shuffled against the ground.

“Are you alright? You seem really tired,” Shiro asked.

Lance nodded with a yawn, “Yeah, kinda came on all at once. Funny thing is I wasn't tired when I got up, I didn't even get my water.” 

Shiro looked concerned but didn't say anything more. Lance barely noticed when Shiro knocked on Coran's door, the two talking in low tones as Shiro explained what had happened. Lance sat down on the floor, leaning against the cool wall. His body felt heavy and he closed his eyes, quickly drifting off into a deep sleep.

Shiro glanced over at Lance, surprised to see he had somehow fallen asleep. "Lance?" He asked, leaning over to shake his shoulder. Coran stopped him, his voice more serious than Shiro had ever heard before. "Take him to the control room and don't take your eyes off him, I'm going to wake the castle. Based on what you have told me, I fear we are in very grave danger." 

**Author's Note:**

> Hello!!  
> So I'm really excited to start this one!! I really tried to make it a little horror, but i get scared really easily so idk how scary it actually is lmao. I wrote this kinda based on my experience with sleep paralysis cause I thought it would help but it actually just made me more scared lolol. That being said I still had a lot of fun writing it and I have plans to continue it!! :)  
> If you liked this story or have any glaring complaints or criticisms hit me up! I love to improve in my writing and comments and kudos make me happy. :D Thank you!! :)


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